photo courtesy of NYRA
In the song “Lord, I’m Discouraged” by the alternative rock group The Hold Steady, the lyrics depict a deeply concerned man watching a woman he loves (relationship unclear) repeatedly inflict self-harm. He feels helpless as he watches the accumulating damage to the object of his love.
With dramatically less serious consequences, those lyrics came to mind for me when the New York Racing Association ran a race at the wrong distance in the final race last Saturday. The self-harm to our sport continues to add up.
Obviously, mistakes happen – it’s why there are accidents – but the more serious the endeavor is, the more precautions are required. In horse racing, other than human and equine safety, there should be nothing more sacrosanct than the integrity of the race. Despite the taped apology from two of the three stewards and the senior vice president of racing operations, the number and manner of mistakes occurring in racing makes one think that the actual racing is not taken as seriously as it should be by the entire industry. The stilted, taped apology spread blame among dozens of people (which actually is more of a condemnation than an excuse) and as the number of races run and the dependence on exotic wagers increase, the importance and sanctity of each actual race seems to decrease. Sometimes I leave a full day’s racing and question whether anyone, save a handful of people, could name even five of the winners on the completed card. The food, the drink, the giveaways, the music, the Corgi races are all garnish on the plate. The racing is the main dish and it deserves the most attention.
Maybe that is too deep, maybe it can simply be chalked up to Saratoga, as this column warned less than three weeks ago, where strange things happen.
Strange Doings
This column has pointed out many times that strange things happen each year at the Saratoga Race Course. Races have been run at the wrong distances, races have been halted mid-race by outriders thinking there was a fallen rider in danger, famously the wrong horse was disqualified from a victory…anomalies abound. Last week added one to the list. Two horses were placed into the wrong starting positions. The horses were to be loaded in stalls three and four respectively, but those positions were transposed and no one noticed prior to the race. Mistakes – they happen – they just seem to happen up here more than elsewhere.
It is discouraging that despite this incident just a few weeks ago and the fact that races have been run at the wrong distance twice before at NYRA tracks in the last decade, no one seemed to take the needed precautions.
Why the Error Matters
Lest one think last week’s error was inconsequential, the single most important aspect of that race from a handicapping perspective was its distance, and countless handicapping hours were spent pondering its effect. To horse players, solving this puzzle – not betting – is the most attractive part of this sport. (Mindless random betting can now be had on anything, anywhere, anyhow. It’s the process of handicapping that matters to horse players.) To dismiss the change in distance as anything other than dispositive upon the outcome is disingenuous. The race as run was fundamentally different than planned and a “no contest” could have and should have been immediately declared, if someone in authority had noticed.
Sadly, this incident is not unique in the self-harm racing inflicts. Some other examples are:
– The Computer Assisted Wagering (CAW) groups discussed in this column and elsewhere continue to wreak havoc on the betting pools and in some instances are partly owned by the race tracks. The advantage these groups have is so strong that one of the most respected long-term handicappers in the sport has publicly expressed his suspicion that CAWs (or someone else) is betting after the starting gate opens. Whether or not this is factual, the growing lack of confidence in the integrity of the races by the core non-CAW bettor is very real.
– Claiming voids. In recent weeks, several claiming races have seen the winner draw off to victory, be claimed by another owner, only to then have the veterinarian “void the claim” thereby nullifying the change of ownership. This was done on the grounds the horse is/was injured. It seems counterintuitive that a decisive winner is unfit to change hands and remains with its prior owner/trainer. Even if the intention is good, it is a bad look and undercuts confidence.
– The Wilson Chute. This week there will be at least nine races starting out of the Wilson Chute, which a prominent horseman and many bettors believe is an unfair configuration.
These Self-Inflicted Wounds Add Up
The final line of “Lord, I’m Discouraged” is chilling and applicable to horse racing’s current state. It reads, “mostly I just pray she don’t die.”
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